Podcasts about fort wainwright

The Anchorage Police Department is continuing to increase patrols as the city continues to see a growing number of fatal vehicle-pedestrian collisions. Plus, a Vietnam War-era helicopter will be back on display beginning Thursday at Fort Wainwright's front gate, after a Fairbanks student repainted it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Ravi Chaudhary, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Energy Installations and Environment, is a leader who has taught his team to, "Eat no for breakfast." He lives by a value he learned from his mother at an early age: "If you do your full duty, the rest will take care of itself."   SUMMARY In this edition of Long Blue Leadership, Dr. Chaudhary discusses his role in modernizing and reoptimizing Air Force installations to withstand kinetic, cyber, economic, and extreme weather threats. He emphasizes the importance of ruggedizing installations for the Great Power Competition. Dr. Chaudhary shares his background, including his upbringing in Minneapolis and his parents' immigrant journey, and highlights the values instilled in him. He also discusses his work on the implementation of microgrids and microreactors to enhance energy resilience at critical installations like Eielson Air Force Base.   5 QUOTES "If you do your full duty, the rest will take care of itself." - This quote from Dr. Chaudhary's mother reflects the importance of dedication and doing one's job well. "We eat no for breakfast." - This quote highlights Dr. Chaudhary's team's determination to not accept limitations and push boundaries. "Love what you do. Love our nation." - Dr. Chaudhary emphasizes the importance of passion and patriotism in leadership. "America is not about what goes on entirely in Washington. It's about neighbors. It's about what you do for your neighbors." - This quote reflects Dr. Chaudhary's belief in the power of community and service. "Get out of the way and let them in." - Dr. Chaudhary's advice on enabling the next generation of leaders to excel.   SHARE THIS EPISODE LINKEDIN  |  TWITTER  |  FACEBOOK   CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction to Dr. Ravi Chaudhary and His Role 03:07 The Importance of Air Force Installations 06:08 Dr. Chaudhary's Early Life and Family Background 09:03 Lessons from Family: Service and Community 11:52 Reflections on the Air Force Academy Experience 14:54 Leadership Lessons from Cadet Days 18:01 The Role of Innovation in the Air Force 20:48 Strategic Imperatives for Future Operations 23:59 Optimism for the Future of the Air Force Academy 25:07 A Lifelong Dream: Becoming a Pilot 27:31 Launching Innovations: The GPS Program 28:36 Inspiring the Next Generation of Pilots 30:14 Adapting to Modern Challenges in Aviation 32:40 Navigating Change: The Evolution of Standards 34:57 Learning from Failure: A Personal Journey 35:42 The Role of the Assistant Secretary 38:55 Preparing for Great Power Competition 41:09 Innovative Energy Solutions for the Future 44:58 Leadership Lessons and Final Thoughts   5 KEYS TO LEADERSHIP Embrace failures as opportunities for growth. Dr. Chaudhary shared how his failures, like failing a check ride, ultimately helped him grow as a leader. Keep moving forward, even in the face of adversity. Dr. Chaudhary emphasized the importance of keeping your "legs moving" and not giving up when faced with challenges. Leverage the bonds formed with your team. Dr. Chaudhary highlighted how the bonds he formed with his classmates at the Academy carried over into his missions, demonstrating the power of camaraderie. Empower and enable the next generation. Dr. Chaudhary expressed optimism about the capabilities of the current cadets and emphasized the need to get out of their way and let them excel. Maintain a service-oriented, patriotic mindset. Dr. Chaudhary's passion for serving his country and community was evident throughout the interview, underscoring the importance of this mindset in effective leadership.   ABOUT DR. CHAUDHARY '93 BIO Dr. Ravi I. Chaudhary is the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Energy, Installations, and Environment, Department of the Air Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. Dr. Chaudhary is responsible for the formulation, review and execution of plans, policies, programs, and budgets to meet Air Force energy, installations, environment, safety, and occupational health objectives. Dr. Chaudhary most recently served as the acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy. Prior to this role, he served as the Director of Advanced Programs and Innovation, Office of Commercial Space Transportation, at the Federal Aviation Administration. He provided technical leadership and oversight for the commercial space industry, to include research and development activities to support Department of Transportation and White House National Space Council initiatives. Prior to this role, he served as Executive Director, Regions and Center Operations, at the FAA. In this role, he was responsible for leadership, integration and execution of aviation operations in nine regions nationwide. Dr. Chaudhary served as second in command to the Deputy Assistant Administrator and was responsible for providing Department of Transportation and FAA-wide services in the areas of operations, safety, policy, congressional outreach and emergency readiness for the National Aerospace System. Dr. Chaudhary commissioned in the Air Force in 1993 upon graduation from the United States Air Force Academy. He completed 21 years of service in a variety of command, flying, engineering and senior staff assignments in the Air Force. As a C-17 pilot, he conducted global flight operations, including numerous combat missions in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as a ground deployment as Director of the Personnel Recovery Center, Multi-National Corps, Iraq. As a flight test engineer, he was responsible for flight certification of military avionics and hardware for Air Force modernization programs supporting flight safety and mishap prevention. Earlier in his career, he supported space launch operations for the Global Positioning System and led third stage and flight safety activities to ensure full-operational capability of the first GPS constellation. As a systems engineer, he supported NASA's International Space Station protection activities to ensure the safety of NASA Astronauts. Dr. Chaudhary is a DoD Level III Acquisition Officer and has published numerous articles in future strategy, aircraft design, business transformation and space operations.  - Bio Copy Credit to AF.MIL   CONNECT WITH DR. CHAUDHARY LINKEDIN  |   INSTAGRAM  |  TWITTER     ABOUT LONG BLUE LEADERSHIP Long Blue Leadership drops every two weeks on Tuesdays and is available on Apple Podcasts, TuneIn + Alexa, Spotify and all your favorite podcast platforms. Search @AirForceGrads on your favorite social channels for Long Blue Leadership news and updates!          FULL TRANSCRIPT OUR SPEAKERS Guest, The Honorable Dr. Ravi I. Chaudhary '93  |  Host, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz '99   Naviere Walkewicz 00:00 My guest today is the assistant secretary of the Air Force for energy installations and environment, the Honorable Dr. Ravi Chaudhary USAFA, Class of '93. Against the backdrop of Great Power Competition, Dr. Chaudhry leads the modernization and reoptimization of the Air Force to ruggedize our installations across the globe against what he describes as kinetic threats, as well as non-kinetic cyber, economic and extreme weather threats. He has served as acting deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for energy; the director of advanced programs and innovation, Office of Commercial Space Transportation at the Federal Aviation Administration; and he has led in the commercial space industry research and development in the support of the Department of Transportation and the White House, National Space Council. We'll talk with Dr. Chaudhry about his life before, during and after the Academy. We'll discuss his role, modernizing and re-optimizing initiatives and strategies for the Air Force. We'll touch on leading through new and changing threats and making decisions with climate in mind, and we'll discuss Dr. Chaudhary's work with the secretary of the Air Force and leadership at the base, command and warfighter levels. Finally, we'll ask Dr. Chaudhary to share advice for developing and advanced leaders. Dr. Chaudhary, welcome to Long Blue Leadership. We're so glad to have you.   Dr. Chaudhary 01:18 Navier, thank you so much. Thank you for that way too kind of an introduction, and I only have one regret. On this weekend, did you have to mention that I was in the Navy for a little while? You just about blew me away. I know you've got some white clear liquid here. I'm just about ready to find out what the clear liquid is.   Naviere Walkewicz Cheers.   Dr. Chaudhary 01:40 Off we go, and we'll let our audience speculate, and depending on how it goes, we'll critique ourselves. Just an honor to be here, and congrats to you on your career of service in the Air Force.   Naviere Walkewicz Thank you so much. This is truly a pleasure. And I think what we love about Long Blue Leadership is it's really about our listeners getting to know you. And we have so many different listeners that are really excited. So let's start with the hat. I've noticed we've got a hat on right here. “Air Force Installations: Best in the World.” Let's talk about it.   Dr. Chaudhary Yeah, let's talk about that. Because we do have the best installations in the world. Our installations are power projection platforms. Every Air Force installation has a mission that begins and terminates with it. If you go all the way back in our history, Gen. Hap Arnold had this to say about our installations: “Air bases are the determining factor in air operations.” Think about that. Think about why we need to make sure that our installations are ready to go, and why we invest in them as an Air Force. It's because you can't get the jets out of town unless they have a good runway that works, unless they are hardened and ready to absorb the types of blows that have come to us in the past. And I'm telling you right now that we've got to be ready for this future, in a decade of consequence in Great Power Competition. We've got to focus on ruggedizing and ensuring that our installations are as survivable as they ever have been.   Naviere Walkewicz Absolutely. Well, I can say that that is certainly true, having been at bases where we've seen some challenges, it does halt and sometimes stop operations. So yeah, you're right. Yeah. So it's incredible the work you're doing, and we're going to talk about that today. But before we get there, can we rewind the clock a little bit?   Dr. Chaudhary Please don't rewind it too far, but I have a feeling you will.   Naviere Walkewicz Just a little bit. Just enough to kind of get to know who Ravi was as a young boy. What were you like growing up? Tell us about your family and where you grew up.   Dr. Chaudhary That's cool. So, I was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I grew up there all my life. My parents came from India in 1960s and they always dreamed to do the unusual, it was the American Dream that brought them to this country. And they had kids, you know, and growing up as a South Asian American, you know, people in community would be like, “Hey, you know, why are you going to join the military? Why are you going to, you know, once you just be a doctor or engineer or lawyer or something like that?” Kind of fit the stereotype. But I always thought about it this way: If my parents would give up everything they wanted in their life, their language, their culture, everything to pursue their dreams, wouldn't they want that for their children as well? And so off I went to the Air Force Academy, and the values that my parents instilled in me rang true just about every single day. In fact, when I grow up, my mom would always tell me this. She'd say, “You know, if you do your full duty, the rest will take care of itself.”   Naviere Walkewicz That sounds very familiar to me.   Dr. Chaudhary And she would say, in the Sanskrit word for that — and my faith tradition is Hinduism — the Sanskrit word for that is “dharm.” If you follow your dharm, everything will take care of itself. And lo and behold, I'm getting choked up a little bit, because when I showed up and opened that Contrails and saw that quote, I knew that Mom and Dad had prepared me, had prepared me for the challenges that would come, not just the Academy, but everything from 9/11 to deploying to Iraq to raising a family and making sure they have everything they need to prosper. So, all that brought me to an institution that honestly brought out the flavor and gave me in the same opportunity that this country gave my father. So, it's just been a pinch-me career, and it's just an honor to be here with you today and with the entire AOG team talking about this.   Naviere Walkewicz 05:36 That's amazing. I mean, I, thinking about what you just said, that your parents came and they pursued a dream. What was that like in your household? What did that look like?   Dr. Chaudhary 05:45 Here's what it looked like. My dad — he actually came to this country with about $165, $80 of which went to his tuition. He was at University of Missouri, and then he eventually went to University of Minnesota. The rest he used to get a house and fill the fridge. And so, when he was looking for an opportunity to serve, he wanted to be in the U.S. Department of Agriculture and serve as a fed and so he didn't get that chance. So, what he did, he literally drove, put me and my brother and my mom in a car and drove to Washington. When he drove to Washington, he dropped us off at the Lincoln Memorial and walked up the stairs of the Capitol. Two senators from Minnesota, one was walking out, Sen. Walter Mondale. He said hello to him. He didn't know him from Adam. And then he went to the office of Hubert Humphrey and he sat down with him, and he told his story to Hubert Humphrey and Hubert Humphrey said, “This is what America is all about.” And he was kind enough to give my dad a shot in Minneapolis. And he spent his entire career, 25 years, as a federal inspector in the U.S. Department of Agriculture.   Naviere Walkewicz My goodness.   Dr. Chaudhary It's an incredible story. But you know what? It all came together about a year and a half ago when I was confirmed and during my swearing, and it was honored to have Sec. Kendall swear me in, but to have my dad walk up the front steps of the Pentagon with my mom and I. We go up the stairs, and I said, “Dad, would you turn around for a second?” And he turned around. I said, “You know, you can see the Lincoln Memorial and you can see the Capitol.” And I said, “Look what you've done in one generation.” That is the embodiment of the American dream. And as he was kind of — I'm getting choked up — he wiped the tears from his eyes. He realized that that that what this country has given to us is something that we've got to always think about giving back and giving back, and that's really what my career has always been about, giving back to the country that has given my family everything.   Naviere Walkewicz 07:59 That is amazing. Wow. I mean, I'm almost without words, because I can see what your dad has instilled in you, made possible, but instilled in you as a servant leader as well. I'm just… that's pretty impressive. So, tell me about your mom, because it sounds like she also instilled some pretty incredible traits in you and some beliefs in how to treat people. What did that look like in, her leadership in your life?   Dr. Chaudhary 08:26 What can I say about my mom? She's a pillar of the community back in Minneapolis. She runs a nonprofit called Seva. In Hindi, seva means service, to serve, serve your fellow citizens, serve your nation. And again, I told you about her, her enduring quote, “If you do your full duty, the rest will take care of itself.” So, in that nonprofit, she is actually bringing cultural-specific services, health services, to the Asian American community. One thing she did during Covid was incredible. She pulled together a meal team, and she served somewhere around 20,000 seniors. And it wasn't just Asian Americans, anybody in the Minneapolis community that was struggling, that couldn't get food, that was having a tough time. And then, as you know, after the George Floyd tragedy occurred, the town, the city went through a tough time, and there was an area right around one of the police stations where the riots were going on and everybody was fleeing when. When the community was fleeing, she was mobilizing her team to go in. They were going in and they were rescuing people from shelters to get them to a safe place. And two days later, she brought a team into the community that was still smoldering and set up meal stations to just give people sandwiches, bread, whatever — to just make everybody feel good and move forward, and that's what America is about. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in the times and differences, but we realize that America is more than just Washington. America is about neighbors and neighbors caring for each other. So, where did I learn that? I learned that from my mom, but the Air Force Academy brought it out, and I applied that every single day, whether it was a mission launching GPSs, doing engineering — tough engineering problems, or flying missions into the CENTCOM AOR, where we had to bring crews to bear to execute incredible missions. And so, reflecting on that — boy, you're really tearing me up today…   Naviere Walkewicz No, not at all…   Dr. Chaudhary …because you're bringing this all out of my heart, and it's just an honor to be here and humbling to tell the story. But I know that there are thousands and thousands of grads out there that have just as inspiring stories, and that's why I love to come to AOG. That's why I like to spend time with our cadets today, which was just as incredible. I went down to Jacks Valley and got to see the assault course as well. Luckily, I didn't have too many flashbacks.   Naviere Walkewicz I was going to say, did you have your rubber ducky with you?   Dr. Chaudhary Yeah, I did not. They didn't push me through it, but the demo was incredible. And I know our secretary was equally impressed with the cadets and the caliber of students that are here, the caliber of our cadets, and how I'm so optimistic for the future of our Air Force and Space Force.   Naviere Walkewicz 11:33 Absolutely. And I can share, based off of what you shared about your mom and dad, there's no reason why you're [not] able to take on a job that almost seems impossible with the scope and breadth of what you're responsible for. So, I can't wait to get into that as well. Can we go to when you're at the Academy? I want to know more about you as a cadet, because as interesting as you are as an adult, what were you like as a cadet?   Dr. Chaudhary 11:54 There's a lot that I really shouldn't disclose. Okay, so we've got to be really, really careful. So, me and my classmates, we have this thing called “mutually assured destruction.” You know stories about me, I know stories about you. Just leave it there. But let me tell you, the Academy was just the honor of a lifetime. But you know what — going through it with your classmates is something. I was just having lunch with our cadets today. I was a grad of Delta Tau Deuce, and to spend time with them and tell them stories, and hear about their stories, about what Deuce is like these days, was absolutely just, I was just blown away with it. But yep, I was primarily in Deuce. I had the just pleasure of beaing a squadron commander and having peers that really care for each other, peers that I keep in touch with. To this very day, I have them up on text.   Naviere Walkewicz Oh, wow.   Dr. Chaudhary And we share with each other. We have challenges. We go through it together, but I will tell you one story about why your cadet story matters, and you don't realize it until the balloon goes up. When I graduated from pilot training, I graduated essentially the day after 9/11 and I was actually in the planning room when 9/11 happened, and within a few weeks — I did my check ride that day — within a few weeks, I was at Charleston Air Force Base, and my squadron commander had me look out the window and said, “We don't have time to mission qual you. We don't have enough pilots. We're going to marry you up with a crew to go down range.” And you know what he did? He married me up with two people, one who was my classmate from the Class of 1993,   Naviere Walkewicz Really?   Dr. Chaudhary Two was a member of my squadron from Deuce, and he was a new aircraft commander. We had an experienced first pilot, and I didn't know nothing from nothing. I was a brand-new co-pilot. And so, getting ready for that, for those missions, a new environment for me, required something that our squadron commander knew that if I put three Academy graduates together, the bond that they've had in their years was going to carry them through toughest conditions, in unknown conditions. And sure enough, we clicked and did well. But to anybody who's a current cadet and listening in and wondering, “Hey, is this bonding — is what's going on now, the time that we have together here in the Academy going to amount to anything?” I'm here to tell you, it does and through my own life experiences, and quite honestly, in a number of missions, we fly working it together as a team. The bonds we create as cadets carry over for decades.   Naviere Walkewicz 14:54 So maybe you can share some of those bonding moments at the Academy. You said you were a squadron commander. What were some of the lessons you learned from a leadership aspect, in leading your peers, but also while still trying to bond with them?   Dr. Chaudhary 15:08 Yeah, when you look back, sometimes you're separated by age and rank, right? You got age and you got rank and your peer groups kind of set you that way. At the Academy, it's completely different because your peers, as a senior, you're all peers and colleagues, and to take on a leadership role is what I would say is the toughest challenge of all. To lead a team of peers and colleagues can be challenging. And there's challenges that really kind of come with everything like that, but to me, you can't do it without collaboration, without consulting folks and being inclusive in how you give people a voice. Now the jury is out — I'm not going to judge whether I was successful or not. Probably not, you know? But I will say we did one thing: It was gonna be we were gonna be the athletic squadron of the year. We were a beast. In fact, we decided that we were gonna go for one thing: We were the athletic squadron. And so, we did.   Naviere Walkewicz That's impressive!   Dr. Chaudhary We kicked some serious buttt. So, back in the day, you do what was called a sweep. So, if you swept all your sports and intramurals that day, you would, the next day, you would get Mitch's Mountains. And so, the lore of Mitch's Mountains was incredible. And today, interestingly enough, we had what I would call Mitch's Mountain version 2.0 — probably half the calories and twice the caffeine. I don't know what it is. But I actually whipped out a picture of an old Mitch's Mountain. And I show them, they're like, it was really funny, because to see the look in their eyes and to see an original Mitch's Mountain, it was like, oh, you know they looked at and they're like, “That's what a Mitch's…” And they're like, “There's an Oreo cookie on top!” I'm like, for us, “Ok, this is a nice 2.0” and everything, like you gotta go back to…   Naviere Walkewicz 17:05 So, how many of those did you get? If you were actually the athletic squadron, you must have swept multiple days.   Dr. Chaudhary 17:12 You see the love handles on me right now? That was the one challenge. Because, you know, [you‘ve] got to stay in shape. But we kicked some serious butt; we would sweep all the time. I was actually on the water polo team…   Naviere Walkewicz 17:25 …we share that. I did not enjoy it. It sounds like you might.   Dr. Chaudhary 17:30 I don't know. So, I'm a decent swimmer. I'm pretty good. Grew up in Minnesota, tons of lakes. I could say I'm a decent swimmer, but I can tell you I am not a water polo player. So, what they used me for in water polo…   Naviere Walkewicz Were you the buouy?   Dr. Chaudhary I was the anti-buoy, because whoever was the good player, they'd say, “Go and put your arms over that one and get them underwater,” so that our fellow water polo teammate could go in and score. And so, probably one of my most beloved plaques in my life is my water polo plaque because we were Wing champs.   Naviere Walkewicz Oh, my goodness!   Dr. Chaudhary We ran the tables and were Wing champs, and that plaque still sits on my desk. It's one of my most beloved things. You know, my wife, she's getting ready to toss it. I'm like, “No, no, not that!”   Naviere Walkewicz Not the water polo plaque!   Dr. Chaudhary She's like, “Oh, what about this graduation plaque from the Academy?” You can get rid of that, but don't get rid of my water polo plaque. That is beloved. So anyways, I was asking cadets today, “What's Deuce like?” I'm like, “So are you guys a training squadron?”   Naviere Walkewicz What are they like?   Dr. Chaudhary They're like, “We're the standards squadron.” And I'm like, “Wow, that's impressive.” I'm like, “What about Mach One? Are they the training?” So, they're like, “Mach One. Nah, not really.” They're like, “We're No. 1 in SAMIs. We're No. 1 is…? I'm like, “Oh, wow, they still have SAMIs and stuff like that.” Have fun. Yeah, that was a haze for me. Triple threats were always a haze, yes, so I never liked that, because well…   Naviere Walkewicz 18:49 Maybe the Deuce team does now.   Dr. Chaudhary 18:53 Mach One, they loved it. I've got friends from Mach One. They're gonna kill me, but yeah, they love it. They're all into it. Cleaning their rooms and Deuce would be on the corner going, “Would Mach One please go to bed?” So anyway, sorry. But yeah, it was an interesting time, you know, talking with some of our cadets.   Naviere Walkewicz 19:26 I love these stories. So, were you this happy as a cadet?   Dr. Chaudhary 19:31 No, I was not a happy cadet. I was a surviving kid. I was trying to get through the next day. And honestly, to me, it was always a wonder to be there, and I was always grateful for being there to serve. I was in a tough major, aero major, and honestly, it didn't come right away to me. And so I was not one of those sterling cadets that just rocks the house and everything. I was on the Comm List for a good portion of the time, but the academics took some time for me. I spent a lot of time in the aero lab. And, you know, the cool thing is, …  I did projects and drag reduction, and we we tested these winglets on the tips of wings, and we did flow visualization. I had this professor. His name was Tom Yechout, and I was talking to some aero majors today. They're like, “You know, Tom Yechout?” And I'm like…   Naviere Walkewicz He's still there.   Dr. Chaudhary “He teaches controls here” I go, “Well, he taught me flight controls as well.” But he supervised me, and one time, I think, maybe at the last reunion, he brought me to the cabinet, and he opened up the cabinet and he showed me the hardware that we used for our project.   Naviere Walkewicz 20:39 From your class?   Dr. Chaudhary 20:43 Yeah.   Naviere Walkewicz That's amazing!   Dr. Chaudhary And here's why I'm telling you that: When in my interview with Sec. Kendall, he sat me down and he was talking about, “Hey, in your in your team, we're doing some drag reduction activities.” And he's like, “What do you know about blended wing body aircraft?” And it turns out, not only had I done some research on that, I had done a project at Staff College and to me, you know, my message to cadets out there who are working on a project who are wondering, “Hey, is this going to amount to anything? Does this matter?” I'm here to tell you that it does, because the type of work that goes on at this Academy is literally out of this world. We got folks who are working with SpaceX. I went down and that we're actually doing a project called the blended wing aircraft, which is like a big flying manta ray. It's going to reduce fuel consumption by roughly 30% to reduce fuel for fuel consumption across our Air Force and extend our range.   Naviere Walkewicz How are we going to do that?   Dr. Chaudhary Well, we're going to build a prototype in 2027. One of my sections is operational energy, and we have a team dedicated to reducing drag on aircraft, finding efficiencies. Why is this important? Well, it's because in Great Power Competition, we know that our adversaries are going to come after our logistics and fuel — our resources. And as a logistician, you know that. Our adversaries are targeting our installations, they're going to target our fuel resources. So, what's the best thing we can do? We can be as efficient as we can with our fuel and flying C-17s, is one thing you get to know real quick that if you land at an austere location, you're going to drain that fuel bladder almost instantly. And what does that mean? That means less sorties. That's less fire missions if you're flying Apache's out of there. That means less fuel for generators if you lose power. That means less ability to get your CAPs in the air, and we've got to embody that as a department and be ready for what that challenge holds for us. So getting efficient with our field, to me, isn't something that we're going to do because we're nice. We're going to do it because it's going to be an imperative. It's going to be a strategic imperative, and we've got to be ready for that. And so, we've been working hard at those things. The blended wing body aircraft is a long-term thing that it's been out there for a long time, but we've got to proof it. And so, it's really cool…   Naviere Walkewicz It's almost full-circle for you.   Dr. Chaudhary Yeah, it's incredible. And we just were at this, at the plant for Jet Zero. We did a visit there to spend some time with them and look at look at their production facility. And what do I see when I walk in the conference room? Five cadets sitting on the end of the table, learning, taking notes, interacting with the top systems engineers. And interestingly enough, one of those cadets had come and visited me and spent the summer — actually, three of them. She was part of a team of three that came and visited my organization and worked on the impacts of strategic temperature changes and how it will affect payloads for tanker aircraft. And so, they did this research, presented me this paper, and now here I am seeing them at industry being on the leading edge. And to me — let me tell you that filled me with so much optimism and excitement for the future, and most importantly, what we're producing here at the Air Force Academy, a top-notch engineering school that is regarded across the industry. So, a little turn to academics there, but big shout out to what we're doing across our academic programs. I just think we're on the right track, and we need to keep up the momentum.   Naviere Walkewicz 24:30 No, that's huge. I was actually going to ask you, how are you leveraging some of our cadets in some of the things you're doing? But it sounds like they're already doing it.   Dr. Chaudhary 24:40 Check! Done. They're rocking the house. Just, just leading the way. It's awesome.   Naviere Walkewicz 24:43 That's amazing. Yeah. So, let's talk about — and I'm really curious — so, after you graduate the Academy, did you know you always wanted to be a pilot, by the way? Did you know you wanted to fly?   Dr. Chaudhary 24:50 I can't remember a day where I wasn't drawing airplanes. And you're asking me about when I was younger. You know, “What kind of kid were you?” I was a kid who was drawing airplanes. OK, I was the kid with the airplane books. I was a kid who was checking out every single airplane book and library and learning about them and trying to understand them and wanting to know more. And so naturally, it was just — I can't think of a day where I didn't want to be an aerospace engineer, be a pilot. And you know, sometimes the ebb and flow of demand for the Air Force —there was a time of reduction in pilots for the for the Academy, and I didn't get that opportunity then and it was a bummer. But you know, if you do your full duty, the rest will take care of itself. And so, I landed at Los Angeles Air Force Base where we launched this program. I got to launch rocket programs. And you may have heard of this particular payload: It's called GPS.   Naviere Walkewicz 25:44 I might have heard of that one, yes…   Dr. Chaudhary 25:47 …and it was the first time we were doing it. And we're young lieutenants, and we're at Los Angeles Air Force Base, and I was getting the responsibility for third-stage engines and ordnance systems and some of the avionics, and my boss said, “We don't have time. We're launching rockets every single month. I need you to go out to this corporation called Thiokol, and I want you to buy that rocket.” And by the way, he said it in a way that was like, “Don't screw this up,” right?   Naviere Walkewicz The undertone was there.   Dr. Chaudhary Yeah, we've had that don't-screw-it-up moment. And so that was one of them. And so, the one thing that I remember is that our Academy demands a lot, and it demands a lot for a reason. Because leaders will be demanding a lot of brand new officers. Now the jury's out as to how well I did, but we had three we had three successful missions, and we delivered full operational capabilities for our department. And to me, I look back on that. I, believe it or not, still keep in touch with the captain who welcomed me, who brought me on the team and, in 2018, I got the incredible opportunity to let the last Delta II rocket go. And I brought my wife and my daughter with me, and that kind of brought the whole band back together. And it was cool to have kind of the old space cowboys and in the room again going, “Well, let's, let's let this rocket go for one last time.”   Naviere Walkewicz That is really cool.   Dr. Chaudhary And the best part of it was, after that rocket went and you felt the rumble — the rumble of a rocket, there's nothing like it in the world. When you feel the rumble go into your stomach — I leaned over my daughter. I go, “What do you think?” She said, “I am doing that.”   Naviere Walkewicz 27:34 I was just going to ask you, did it bleed over into your daughter?   Dr. Chaudhary 27:38 Now, she's a cadet at Georgia Tech. She just finished field training, and of course, like every good Academy graduate should do, buck the system. So, she bucked the system with her dad and said, “I'm gonna do ROTC and go to Georgia Tech. So, good luck this weekend against Navy. I'll kind of vote for you, but just want to let you know the Academy is a lot easier than Georgia Tech.” So, she and I jaw back and forth, but watching her grow has been really cool. And I got a chance to take her up and fly and get her ready for her career. She wants to be a pilot. And let me tell you, we got nothing on this next generation. They are ready for technology. They are ready for the leading edge, and we've just got to enable them. Honestly, we've got to get the hell out of the way and let them in. There's one situation, we had new avionics on the aircraft. I won't bore you with the details, but it allows you to deconflict from traffic. It's a GPS-based instrument, and I was kind of flying with her one time a few years ago, and I said, “All right, well, this is what is so, you know that little piece, you know 2,000 below you, positive means 2,000 above you. It's closing it…” She's like, “Dad, Dad, Dad, stop, stop!”   Naviere Walkewicz 28:58 She knew…   Dr. Chaudhary 29:00 She knew how to interact with that technology, and honestly, I didn't. I was learning how to interact with that technology. So, we've got to really make sure that we're blazing a path for our next generation, but at the same time, make sure that that we're not getting in their way. And I think sometimes we do that as grads. We're like, “I was like this when I was there…” You know? I was at Mitchell Hall today, and I saw the 0-96 up there and it's memorialized. And I walked by that thing…   Naviere Walkewicz 29:32 Did you scan the QR code to fill one out?   Dr. Chaudhary 29:33 Yeah, I did not do the QR code. I was like, that's too much for me. But when you look at it, you know, I thought, I'm like, that's probably where that thing ought to be right now. It's a great remembrance of why it's important, why standards are important, and then the example of how it paid off in combat conditions and saved a life was pretty important. But I'll be honest with you, we find other ways today with this next generation. I can remember flying one mission and we lost SATCOMMS with a particular field, and we were roughly maybe six hours out for Iraq in the combat zone, and we didn't know the status of the field. And one of the things you need to do is make sure the field's not under attack. So, before we did that, we're like, “Hey, how do we get our 30-minute… You know, it just wasn't happening. But you know what we're doing. We had brevity codes. And all along the line, all the C-17s that were lined up miles after miles going all the way back to Azerbaijan at 30,000 feet. We're all on. We're communicating. … We're using brevity code, so, we're not giving anything away. We're using our brevity code, and we're saying this is the status of the field. And we're relaying, we're literally relaying a half world away. That's a testament to our pilot corps, testament to duty. And so it's really in the spirit of that 0-96 there that we've adopted. So, when people say, “Oh, that tradition is going to ruin us, you know, we're going to lose standards.” I could tell you that, even though we got rid of that thing, that we're still an effective force. And I think we have to understand that a little more and as we kind of move through a period of change at USAFA — I was talking to our cadets about, “Hey, what do you think about the changes?” and, “Yeah, well, restrictions, but I understand on the importance.” I'm going to hearken back to 1991 or so, when the first Gulf War kicked off, and we were cadets when that thing kicked off, and almost instantly we moved into BDUs. We started wearing those every day. We started creating the warfighter mindset. We sealed off to make sure that we had good security. We canceled a lot of passes, and you  know what we did? We moved from a fourth-class system to a four-class system. Sound familiar? Sound familiar? That was after the war kicked off. Think about that. After the war kicked off. Our superintendent is trying to do it before the war kicks off, to make sure that we're ready, ready to fight the fight and get into it. So, I have a lot of respect for our superintendent and taking this step. I do agree that we've got to get execution right. Sometimes you get some growing pains with those things, but I think we've got to step back in the grad community and digest a little bit and get behind some of the changes that have been going on. And I was talking to some cadets last night, I go, “What do you think of this?” And they're like, “We understand it. It hurts a little bit.” Because the expectations … the environment that we're in has now changed. And you know, honestly, I'll shoot straight from the hip and say that sometimes it feels like the goal post is being moved on you, because you meet one standard, and then they move again. Yeah, you know, things get tough, but we're a resilient institution, and when you get down to the brass tacks of who we are as grads, the core of what we do and execute our mission will never go away. And we've just got to blaze a path for our next generation to be successful.   Naviere Walkewicz 33:24 Absolutely. Well, speaking of blaze a path — and I think some of our listeners want to hear sometimes, you know they have times when they fail at things in leadership. How do you grow from that? Can you share a time when you experience failure and what it looked like, to help inspire them through that.   Dr. Chaudhary 33:42 Yep. Well, worst day of my life was when I failed a check-ride. I failed a simulator check-ride in the C-17. And it hurt. It hurt bad. I had aspirations in my career. I was like, “What's this gonna mean for me?” But you know some really smart folks, and that's when you turn to people who you really go to for advice, and it's like, you know, “Ravi, there are those who have and those who will.” So honestly, I just needed a smack in the head. They're like, “Get over it, man. You know, whatever you failed check-ride. Go out there, clean that thing up and those ups and downs in a flying career occur.” I'm being 100% honest with you, my failures are stacked up right next to my successes. And so, I think, to me, the failures were the things that helped me grow, grow through things and sometimes you think, “OK, well, that failure was unfair. I got, you know, I got a raw deal out of that.” Maybe I did, maybe I didn't, but you keep moving forward. Keep taking one step after another. Now I'm not a football guy. I love football. Watch about I never played football, but I do know what running back coaches say. I think, I'm not sure, they say, “Above all, always keep your legs moving. Don't ever up when you're running. Keep your legs moving.” And so, to me, I've always taken that advice. I've given that advice to other people too, especially when they come to me with challenges.   Naviere Walkewicz 35:09 That's great advice. So maybe we can talk about your role now a little bit. And so, can you actually explain what you do? It might actually be shorter to say what you don't do, because when I look at the description, it's quite a bit. We have listeners that are parents and that maybe don't have a lot of military background and really understand. So, I think it's wonderful to share with the full community.   Dr. Chaudhary 35:31 Yeah, let me talk about the position. So, the job is one of those long titles. It's the assistant secretary for energy, installations and the environment. First thing first. I'm not a military member. I am a presidential appointee, so my job is as an appointee, a Senate-confirmed appointee. That means that you go through a hearing like you see in TV, and you get voted on, right? You get the vote. I was lucky enough to have after a period of being held, I had a bipartisan vote. And so that was pretty neat to have that. But my role specifically is to ensure that our installations are ready for the fight, for the future fight, and for current conditions. Things that I lose sleep over: Right now we're in a decade of consequence that our secretary and chief regularly say that decade of consequence includes great power competition in which China and Russia seek to shape the world order in ways that that work to their advantage, in autocratic manner, and so we've got to be ready for that, and that includes establishing an important deterrence. So, my job is to make sure installations are strong and present an approach of deterrence, and when deterrence failed, be ready to win. So, what does that mean for us? That means ensuring that our installations have power capabilities, that have strong runways, that have strong hangars, strong facilities, and included in which — families live on installations as well — to ensure we have top-notch housing. So, you'll see me reaching across all those areas, but importantly enough, making sure that those installations have the right power is critical. Our adversaries have declared their intent and have the capacity to go after our critical infrastructure, and that's the one thing that keeps me up at night: making sure that we have critical redundancies and opportunities to if somebody comes after our infrastructure tries to cut our power, we have redundant capabilities, that our control systems are cyber hardened. And you mentioned earlier, both kinetic and cyber threats. So roughly in the past two decades, as China has modernized our CENTCOM theater has really shaped an environment in which CONUS installations are under threat a little bit, but not entirely. We could be relatively confident that Grand Forks would be generally safe from ISIS from a major attack. In Great Power Competition, all of that goes out the window. Our adversaries, to include Russia and China, know how to go after critical infrastructure. They know how to employ cyber capabilities, and that's why we've got to make sure that we are pursuing cyber hardened energy control systems that protect you from those threats, and the ability to island from the local grid when we need to. So, here's one thing we're doing. I'm on a march over the next five years to bring 20 or so micro grids across our most critical installations. A micro grid — it's kind of like a power bar. You plug it in the wall and you can plug in renewable energy, you plug in wind, geo, you know, all kinds of things into that — solar — to build critical redundancies. So ultimately, building those redundancies allows you to harden your capabilities at the installation and micro-reactors give you the ability to manage and distribute power where you need it. Now we can also put in battery storage. So, battery storage allows you to — when the balloon goes up, boom, put in a firewall with the local community and get the jets out of town. Keep your employed in-place mission moving and build critical redundancies. Then once the jets are out of town, plug back in and share that power with a local community, because we know that our adversaries are going to be driving civil disruption to affect the efficiency of our installations as well, too. So that dynamic is really complex.   Naviere Walkewicz Wow, and the time is compressed.   Dr. Chaudhary And the time is compressed, so we won't have time to react as quickly. So, we've got to prepare for an all-new environment in our installations. And it goes right back to the Hap Arnold quote. We've got to make sure that they're ready to ensure our operations are effective. And I was recently at Eielson Air Force Base, and what we're doing at Eielson is really novel. We're going to put in a small, modular micro-reactor, a small baby nuclear reactor.   Naviere Walkewicz Is there a small version of that?   Dr. Chaudhary Yeah, there is a small version, but it hadn't been developed yet, and we decided that we're going to push on with this new capability and bring it to Eielson Air Force Base. The key is to now — back in the day, we used to do something, proof it military-wise, and then see if it's viable in the in the commercial market, right? Not anymore. We're going to do it all concurrently. So, we're going to pursue a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license. We've been engaging the local community. They love it, including tribal nations, who know that power advantages are going to be important for sharing in the community. And so that will be the first micronuclear reactor in any installation. We're looking to award in the spring or sooner, and then get this thing up and running in 2027. Why is this important at Eielson? And you're like, “Whoa, it's way up in Alaska.” Eielson is a critical entry point for the INDOPACOM theater.   Naviere Walkewicz I was gonna say, where it's located…   Dr. Chaudhary It's where the one of the highest concentrations of our 5th-gen fighter force is at. It's where we do air defense, and it's where our mobility forces will be moving from Fort Wainwright all the way down range. So that's a critical node, and there's a few more of those that we've got to really, really stay focused on. So, energy and, by the way, a happy Energy Action Month as well. This month is Energy Action Month where we're looking at how we can improve power consumption across our Air Force and be more efficient. And bringing these micro-grids online is going to be a crucial, crucial aspect of that.   Naviere Walkewicz 42:07 Well, something I've learned about you is that you're not afraid to push the envelope, push the speed, but do it, like you said, concurrently and to find some solutions. And I don't know that there's anyone else that could do it just like are you're doing it.   Dr. Chaudhary 42:19 It's not me, it's my team. I have an incredible team of folks that refuse to accept anything [less] than excellence in our department. In fact, we have a saying in our organization that, “We eat no for breakfast.” So, I dare you to tell us no and that we can't do something. One of our coolest announcements recently that we were told “no” to for roughly three years, was a new apartment complex at Edwards Air Force Base. So, some folks may not know this, but Edwards Air Force Space is very isolated, and it's located in the desert, and so it takes roughly 45 minutes to get to the base once you get through the gate. And so, isolation of our military members, especially our junior enlisted, has been around for roughly four decades or more. And when we said, “Hey, let's do a venture-backed business model that allows us to bring state of the art departments not in MILCOM timeline like right now, timeline…” And so, we just announced an all-new venture commercial apartment complex that we just broke ground on, and we're going to start building, hopefully done by 2026 and these are timelines that allow us to move the Air Force forward aggressively. Another thing that we're doing is, I just announced a $1.1 billion investment in our dormitories and CDCs. As you know, quality of life is so critical. Back to this: If we're going to be, say that we're the number, have the number one installations in the world, we've got to live up to it, and that means our families need that too, as well. So, you've heard a lot about the GAO reports, everything from mold to decrepit housing. We're going to fix that, we're going to get ahead of it, and we're going to stay ahead of it. And so that's why our secretary, in our most recent president's budget, announced this. All we need is a budget now, yeah, and so, so our secretary is pressing hard for that, and we know that once that budget is approved, we can get working on these things and start changing quality of life and start upping our game in our installations.   Naviere Walkewicz 44:23 Well, I'm gonna take one of those leadership nuggets as “just eat no for breakfast,” but we're gonna learn more about your final takeaway lessons. Before we do that with you. Dr Chaudhary, I wanna thank you for listening to Long Blue Leadership. The podcast publishes Tuesdays in both video and audio, and it's available on all your favorite podcast platforms, watch or listen to all episodes of Long Blue Leadership at longblueleadership.org. Dr Chaudhary, this has been incredible. If you might leave our listeners with one thing, what would you like to share with them when it comes to leadership, or maybe just some lessons or anything about you that you'd like to share?   Dr. Chaudhary 44:57 Love what you do. Love our nation. I love my country because it's given me and my family everything. And I want everybody to believe that, you know, sometimes we get in these periods where we feel divided right across the spectrum, and it doesn't matter what your affiliation is, sometimes you just feel that. But I want folks to remember that America is not about what goes on entirely in Washington. It's about neighbors. It's about what you do for your neighbors. And to me, that's our biggest strength as a nation. You know, many years ago, our forefathers felt that the values of equality, fair treatment and self-determination would be enough to topple an empire, and it is. We should believe that too, and I want everybody to know that. So, it's an honor to be here. But before I go, I want to say thank you for just an intriguing hour. It's an honor to be here, and I want to give you my personal challenge coin…   Naviere Walkewicz Oh my goodness…   Dr. Chaudhary …and say thank you so much. It embodies a lot of what we do, military family housing, airfields, of course our beautiful 5th-gen fighter aircraft and our wind power and capabilities as a symbol of what we've got to do for installation school.   Naviere Walkewicz 46:16 That is an honor, sir. Thank you. Thank you so much. Oh my goodness, thank you.   Dr. Chaudhary 46:20 It was a great hour, and just a pleasure to spend time with…   Naviere Walkewicz 46:26 It was my pleasure. There's so much I wanted ask you and I know we're limited on time … Is there anything we can do for you?   Dr. Chaudhary 46:36 Just keep doing what you do. Keep making sure that our grads out there have a voice, have a say, and can contribute to all this institution has to offer our nation. And so, you're doing it, and I can't thank you enough for it.   Naviere Walkewicz 46:49 Thank you very much.     KEYWORDS Air Force, Dr. Ravi Chaudhary, leadership, installations, energy, community service, innovation, military, great power competition, sustainability, Air Force Academy, leadership, aviation, innovation, energy solutions, GPS, pilot training, military standards, personal growth, resilience     MORE FROM DR. CHAUDHARY ON THE FOR THE ZOOMIES PODCAST with C1C ANDREW CORMIER '25     The Long Blue Line Podcast Network is presented by the U.S. Air Force Academy Association and Foundation      

Soldiers stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and Fort Wainwright have been deployed to the Aleutian Islands following what some leaders characterized as increased Russian and Chinese activity near Alaska.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The father of an airman who was killed by an alleged drunk driver at the main gate on Fort Wainwright remembers his son as an outstanding young man who never got into trouble. That story and more news and weather on this Friday. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tone and Larry chop it up with Edward Wright, Esq (mentor and friend of the pod) about his professional journey, which illustrates the importance of charting your own course (while also highlighting the versatility of a law degree). If this episode resonates with you at all, please go ahead and subscribe, drop a comment, and tell a friend to tell a friend!More about Eddie:Captain Edward Wright will promote to Major on May 12, 2024. He currently serves as the Chief of Client Legal Services for III Armored Corps and Fort Cavazos. The Chief of Client Legal Services leads a team that serve III Armored Corps, the Fort Cavazos Installation, and over 450,000 eligible clients; including Soldiers, Dependents, Reservist and Retirees in the Central Texas Region. He supervises 6 Judge Advocates, 4 Paralegals, and 4 civilian employees (2 civilian attorneys and 2 civilian paralegals). CPT Wright is responsible for the compliance of Army Regulation (AR) 27-3; including but not limited to, providing adequate training to all assigned personnel; reviewing all office administrative procedures, reports of legal assistance services, client satisfaction surveys; taking reasonable measures to ensure lawyers and paralegals conform their conduct to the rules of professional responsibility and periodic review of incoming and out-going correspondence. He also establishes local legal assistance policies and procedures consistent with AR 27-3 and manages the processing of tort and affirmative claims on Fort Cavazos. CPT Wright has served as a Brigade Judge Advocate, Senior Trial Counsel, Trial Defense Counsel, and Administrative Law Attorney. His duty assignments include 101st Airborne Division, Fort Cambell, KY; Trial Defense Service – West Region, Fort Wainwright, AK; 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Cavazos, TX; and III Armored Corps, Fort Cavazos, TX. Prior to serving in the JAG Corps, CPT Wright ran his own Solo practice in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from 2011-1017 and worked for the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office from 2009-2011. CPT Wright earned a Juris Doctorate from Thurgood Marshall School of Law, Texas Southern University and Bachelor's of Arts degree in International Affairs and Global Politics from Marquette University.Welcome to the ScholarChip$ podcast hosted by Larry Alexander and Tone Gaines. Larry is a transactional attorney at a Fortune 500 Company. Tone is a Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions attorney at a large law firm in Chicago. But more importantly, both Larry and Tone are Black Men from the inner city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The duo started ScholarChip$ to (1) create a platform to have candid conversations with scholars and (2) normalize academics as a viable way to achieve upward mobility in Black and Brown communities.Discussions in this podcast are for general information and entertainment purposes only. Nothing contained in this podcast constitutes financial, legal, tax or any other professional advice. Always consult a professional regarding your individual circumstance. NOR DOES IT CONSTITUTE AN ENDORSEMENT OF ANY INDIVIDUAL GUEST. ALWAYS DO YOUR DILIGENCE. 

FBI Director Christopher Wray outlined the challenges his agency faces in cyber warfare. We share what he had to say about threats against the United States. Three U.S. Army soldiers were killed and one was injured when two AH-64 Apache helicopters collided on April 27. The accident happened in Alaska near Fort Wainwright where they were based. The White House appeals to Americans who want out of Sudan to leave as soon as possible. Meanwhile, fighting continues to rage in some areas despite the extension of a fragile truce. ⭕️ Watch in-depth videos based on Truth & Tradition at Epoch TV

Food service specialists from the 1/25th SBCT Brigade Support Battalion compete in a Cook-of-the-Quarter competition at Fort Wainwright, AK.

On today's Midday Report with host Terry Haines: U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough visited Alaska last week. The U.S. Army is proposing to replace Fort Wainwright's coal-fired heat and power plant with natural-gas fired boilers installed around the post. And the former head of Anchorage's equal opportunity office is suing Mayor Dave Bronson and his administration in federal court.

This episode of The Jason Cavness Experience is a replay of my talk with James Marszalek - Founder of Operation Red Dot Our Affiliates Close.com - If you hate your sales CRM or know that you inevitably need to make a change because what you have is not working, certainly check out Close. It's quick and easy to set up and sales rep adoption is extremely high! Give their trial a shot PeopleKeep - If your company has 49 or fewer employees a PeopleKeep personalized benefits advisor can evaluate whether a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) is right for your business. Reach out today to get your questions answered. https://www.peoplekeep.com/cavnesshr Everee Payroll - Run payroll or contractor payments from anywhere in seconds with just one swipe on a mobile app. Focus on growing your business instead of on compliance. We remit, file and report on federal, state, local and unemployment insurance taxes, as well as handle your W2s and 1099s. https://offers.everee.com/cavness-hr CavnessHR - delivers HR companies with 49 or fewer people with our HR platform and by providing you access to your own HRBP. www.CavnessHR.com We talk about the following Why and how he is raising $100M Why do some people have drive and others don't Challenges of military housing Poker, pool, travel and philosophy Seeing life through the lens of other people Operation Red Dot James' Bio James is an Army combat veteran who spent 7 years in the Army with 5-1 Cav out of Fort Wainwright, AK as a Scout. He deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, supporting 5th group SF in the fight against terrorism. His entrepreneurial spirit was formed at 15 years old with the book "The Millionaire Next Door", and spurred several unofficial entrepreneurial "projects" starting, ironically, in basic training for the Army. After leaving the Army in 2012 James became a full time Entrepreneur, and has started 4 companies from the ground up since. Currently operating a real estate company and a hedge fund with the mission to end the military housing crisis, and help service members get housing ahead of their relocation to avoid long hotel stays and other stresses; and is also designed to set military families up to leave their service with a 6 figure nest egg and passive income, aiming for financial freedom through real estate. Currently in a round 1 fundraise, having secured 5 million out of the 20 million sought. We've landed almost $100,000,000 in sales since opening the company in 2016, and currently hold $25,000,000 in rental assets under management at JBLM. The business' BHAG is to put 1,000,000 military families into homes over the next 10 years, helping service members buy and rent across 75 military installations across the US. James' life is mostly business by choice, often strategizing, planning, and executing till 1am. But, when he isn't empire building, hustling poker and pool tables, watching documentaries, or traveling is likely where you'd find him. He believes in deep philosophical level thinking, inspiring others to seek wisdom, and simply put good into the world. James' Social Media J ames' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesmarszalek/ James' FB: https://www.facebook.com/Mad.Hatter87 Operation Red Dot YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6F14c3w3JRZA-iADtsm3aw/videos Operation Red Dot website: https://www.operationreddot.com/ James' email: James@operationreddot.com James' Gift J ames invites you to reach out to him to talk about the military housing challenge, Operation Red Dot, entrepreneurship and a host of other subjects. He also invites you to check out these sites. ActiveDutyPassiveIncome.com, or here's the FB group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/308832522898149. James' Advice T hink about things that are bigger than you. Put your ego aside for two seconds. Think about finding a new 3d set of glasses that show you perspective on something new. I think we get in our own way, a lot of the time. I think we can do better if you're able to set that stuff aside. So put good into the world without any expectation of return and see what happens. Go www.thejasoncavnessexperience.com for the full episode and other episodes of The Jason Cavness Experience on your favorite platforms.

On this episode of The Jason Cavness Experience I talk to James Marszalek - Founder of Operation Red Dot We talk about the following Why and how he is raising $100M Why do some people have drive and others don't Challenges of military housing Poker, pool, travel and philosophy Seeing life through the lens of other people Operation Red Dot James' Bio James is an Army combat veteran who spent 7 years in the Army with 5-1 Cav out of Fort Wainwright, AK as a Scout. He deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, supporting 5th group SF in the fight against terrorism. His entrepreneurial spirit was formed at 15 years old with the book "The Millionaire Next Door", and spurred several unofficial entrepreneurial "projects" starting, ironically, in basic training for the Army. After leaving the Army in 2012 James became a full time Entrepreneur, and has started 4 companies from the ground up since. Currently operating a real estate company and a hedge fund with the mission to end the military housing crisis, and help service members get housing ahead of their relocation to avoid long hotel stays and other stresses; and is also designed to set military families up to leave their service with a 6 figure nest egg and passive income, aiming for financial freedom through real estate. Currently in a round 1 fundraise, having secured 5 million out of the 20 million sought. We've landed almost $100,000,000 in sales since opening the company in 2016, and currently hold $25,000,000 in rental assets under management at JBLM. The business' BHAG is to put 1,000,000 military families into homes over the next 10 years, helping service members buy and rent across 75 military installations across the US. James' life is mostly business by choice, often strategizing, planning, and executing till 1am. But, when he isn't empire building, hustling poker and pool tables, watching documentaries, or traveling is likely where you'd find him. He believes in deep philosophical level thinking, inspiring others to seek wisdom, and simply put good into the world. James' Social Media James' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesmarszalek/ James' FB: https://www.facebook.com/Mad.Hatter87 Operation Red Dot YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6F14c3w3JRZA-iADtsm3aw/videos Operation Red Dot website: https://www.operationreddot.com/ James' email: James@operationreddot.com James' Gift James invites you to reach out to him to talk about the military housing challenge, Operation Red Dot, entrepreneurship and a host of other subjects. He also invites you to check out these sites. ActiveDutyPassiveIncome.com, or here's the FB group link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/308832522898149. James' Advice Think about things that are bigger than you. Put your ego aside for two seconds. Think about finding a new 3d set of glasses that show you perspective on something new. I think we get in our own way, a lot of the time. I think we can do better if you're able to set that stuff aside. So put good into the world without any expectation of return and see what happens.

This week on The Panjwai Podcast we are privileged to have Thomas Underhill join us. Tom was a Combat Medic assigned to 1-5 Infantry out of Fort Wainwright, Alaska, and served in Dand District and Panjwai from April 2011 to March 2012. In Panjwai, Tom served at COP Sperwan Ghar where he and his platoon owned the western side of the AO and soon found that the realities of combat in Dand were not the same as the realities of combat in the Horn of Panjwai. Tom does a great job of highlighting those realities and offering some insight from his time as a Combat Medic and as a teammate to his brothers in arms, as well as a breathtaking account of the mass casualty event that sticks with him to this day. https://buff.ly/3hkfOg5 - The Military Times account of the effort to save Lieutenant Vogt --------------------------------- The views expressed by the guests and hosts of this podcast do not represent the views of the Department of Defense or United States Government. ——————————————— Also Available on: Apple: https://buff.ly/3gTXet9 Spotify: https://buff.ly/2Kx6cjR Google: https://buff.ly/2XX2Zxz Podbean: https://buff.ly/2WoN0aF iHeartRadio: https://buff.ly/3nc5Wo1 Check out the video version of the podcast at : https://buff.ly/3cJT2uo For maps, photos and more information about Panjwai go to : https://buff.ly/2M4T4n8 You can donate and support the podcast on Patreon for as little as $3.00 a month. visit https://buff.ly/2SM39c0 to learn more. Direct donations can also be sent via venmo @thepanjwaipodcast Be sure to like, follow, and/or subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Youtube, TuneIn, Amazon Music and many more. visit https://buff.ly/2MS2suv for more information. Social Media: Facebook: https://buff.ly/390Dr95 Instagram: @thepanjwaipodcast Twitter: @panjwaipodcast --------------------------------

On this episode I have Ken Blaisdell and this is his story. My name is Kenneth Blaisdell; I joined the Army when I was 20. I went to basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. From Basic Training, I went to Fort Rucker, Alabama for 9 weeks to learn my job as an Aviation Operation Specialist. I couldn’t have been happier; I got my dream duty station Fort Wainwright Alaska. Things couldn’t go any better; I was able to go to the one state I always wanted to explore. Shortly after getting to C Co. 1-52nd Aviation Regiment, Flying Dragons, Dustoff, I was told I would be deploying to Afghanistan in 2014 for 9 months. I ran 9-line missions while deployed, which means when someone got hurt, I would launch the crews to save the wounded, but also got to go on the missions to help the medics. I got taken out of the fight two times due to severe stomach problems from eating the local food. It’s now to the point if I eat the wrong food at the wrong time, I will become physically ill for as many as two to three weeks and end up in the hospital. I was in the United States Army until 2016, but shortly after I got back from Afghanistan was when I suffered life-altering injuries from a car accident and a sledding accident. Everything slowly unfold, I went to a walker then a wheelchair. I had broken bones in my feet, my feet were curled and bent inwards; I couldn’t walk, and my legs started to bow outwards. I could feel my bones when they broke over and over again. I waited six months at Fort Wainwright until they started the med board process. My dream of serving 20 years was crushed. 100 Seconds by Punch Deck | https://soundcloud.com/punch-deck Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en_US

Join the after party on Discord! Link: https://discord.gg/ZzJSrGP UFO sighting: 'Alien craft' over California sparks claim of secret army testing at Area 51 Link: https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/1287102/UFO-sighting-alien-spacecraft-California-Area-51-UFO-army-testing-Scott-Waring A UFO photographed over Southern California may have come from the top-secret Area 51 airforce base, a prominent UFO hunter has claimed. The unidentified flying object (UFO) was photographed over Palm Springs, California, prompting claims of an alien craft in the skies. According to self-described UFO expert Scott C Waring, the UFO may have come from the highly classified US Air Force base known as Area 51. Area 51 has been at the heart of many UFO stories and alien conspiracy theories, including the 1947 Roswell incident. Mr Waring said on his blog ET Data Base: "This UFO was seen over Palm Springs, California this week. "The object was only seen for a few seconds. "It's located on far southern California so it's mostly rocky desert. "This is one of the prime areas that UFOs will be seen from Area S4, which is inside Area 51." The UFO photo was originally shared to MUFON or the Mutual UFO Network by an eyewitness on May 24. The photo appears to show a blurry, grey object flying far behind a power transformer seen in the foreground. According to the original eyewitness statement, the UFO appeared and disappeared "in a blink of the eye". The eyewitness said the object was tic tac-shaped with appendages. The UFO also disappeared as soon as its photo was taken. California is home to more military installations than any other state, with a total of 32. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and National Guard/Reserve bases are located across California. The Army and the Air Force make up more than 75 percent of the manpower in Alaska at the Fort Wainwright, Fort Greely, and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Most of the training operations prepare service members for operating in inhospitable winter climates whether on the ground or in the air. Ohio's Wright Patterson Air Force Base is one of the Air Force's largest and most important installations. It is home to the world's first operational airfield. UFO sighting: Alien spaceship spotted in NASA Apollo 9 mission – claim Link: https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/1286594/ufo-sighting-alien-spaceship-nasa-apollo-9-ufos-aliens-news ALIEN enthusiasts believe they have spotted a UFO in the clouds in images from NASA's historic Apollo 9 mission. Apollo 9 saw three NASA astronauts blasted into the Earth's orbit for 10 days as a test flight before the Apollo 11 mission, which saw the first people land on the Moon. Commander James McDivitt, Command Module Pilot David Scott, and Lunar Module Pilot Rusty Schweickart lifted off from Earth on March 3, 1969, before spending 10 days in orbit, completing 151 trips around Earth. The three men landed back on Earth on March 13, just four months before the Apollo 11 mission set off for the Moon. Prominent conspiracy theorist Scott C Waring has been analysing the images from the NASA astronauts and believes he has found a UFO which is "100 percent" proof of aliens. Mr Waring wrote on his blog ET Database: "I found a triangle UFO in an old Apollo 9 mission photo. The module was flying directly over Arizona at the time and this triangle UFO was seen in the clouds below. "The triangle looks dark brown. The object is blurry at an equal pace as that of the clouds and other objects [sic ]in the picture. "Had this been 100 percent focused and the clouds blurry, then we would know its not real, but thats not how it is here. "The UFO and the other things in the photo have the same focus which tells us its 100 percent real." This Math Formula Has Determined the Odds of Aliens Existing Link: https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a32603529/math-formula-aliens-exist/ David Kipping leads, yes, the Cool Worlds Laboratory at Columbia University. In an explainer video (below), he describes some background for the question of intelligent life in the universe and concludes, “I've never been much for faith—I want an answer.” Kipping mentions the changing trends over centuries of human imagination: Basically, as soon as people realized what they saw in the sky included other planets, they began to wonder if other planets had intelligent life. An underdeveloped instrument caused astronomers to see “manmade” canals on the surface of Mars during the 1800s. Turn to Bayesian (bei·Zhn) analysis, a way of using what we do know to extrapolate what we don't. And to do that, Kipping put Earth's long history on a replay loop. The squeeze here is whether or not that life would eventually evolve intelligence. Instead of 3:1, the odds are just 3:2, meaning three of every five reruns with life would become intelligent life. So overall, that means a 75 percent probability of life and 60 percent likelihood of intelligence, for an overall probability of 45 percent. If the Bayesian analysis is right, that means even for Earth to be itself was the probabilistic minority. But it's still a more concrete argument for the existence of life on Earthlike planets around the universe. “Overall, our work supports an optimistic outlook for future searches for biosignatures,” the paper explains. Show Stuff Join the fan chat on Discord! Link: https://discord.gg/ZzJSrGP The Dark Horde Podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-dark-horde The Dark Horde, LLC – http://www.thedarkhorde.com Twitter @DarkHorde or https://twitter.com/HordeDark Support the podcast and shop @ http://shopthedarkhorde.com UBR Truth Seekers Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/216706068856746 UFO Buster Radio: https://www.facebook.com/UFOBusterRadio YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCggl8-aPBDo7wXJQ43TiluA To contact Manny: manny@ufobusterradio.com, or on Twitter @ufobusterradio Call the show anytime at (972) 290-1329 and leave us a message with your point of view, UFO sighting, and ghostly experiences or join the discussion on www.ufobusterradio.com For Skype Users: bosscrawler

Join the after party on Discord! Link: https://discord.gg/ZzJSrGP UFO sighting: 'Alien craft' over California sparks claim of secret army testing at Area 51 Link: https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/1287102/UFO-sighting-alien-spacecraft-California-Area-51-UFO-army-testing-Scott-Waring A UFO photographed over Southern California may have come from the top-secret Area 51 airforce base, a prominent UFO hunter has claimed. The unidentified flying object (UFO) was photographed over Palm Springs, California, prompting claims of an alien craft in the skies. According to self-described UFO expert Scott C Waring, the UFO may have come from the highly classified US Air Force base known as Area 51. Area 51 has been at the heart of many UFO stories and alien conspiracy theories, including the 1947 Roswell incident. Mr Waring said on his blog ET Data Base: "This UFO was seen over Palm Springs, California this week. "The object was only seen for a few seconds. "It's located on far southern California so it's mostly rocky desert. "This is one of the prime areas that UFOs will be seen from Area S4, which is inside Area 51." The UFO photo was originally shared to MUFON or the Mutual UFO Network by an eyewitness on May 24. The photo appears to show a blurry, grey object flying far behind a power transformer seen in the foreground. According to the original eyewitness statement, the UFO appeared and disappeared "in a blink of the eye". The eyewitness said the object was tic tac-shaped with appendages. The UFO also disappeared as soon as its photo was taken. California is home to more military installations than any other state, with a total of 32. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and National Guard/Reserve bases are located across California. The Army and the Air Force make up more than 75 percent of the manpower in Alaska at the Fort Wainwright, Fort Greely, and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Most of the training operations prepare service members for operating in inhospitable winter climates whether on the ground or in the air. Ohio's Wright Patterson Air Force Base is one of the Air Force's largest and most important installations. It is home to the world's first operational airfield. UFO sighting: Alien spaceship spotted in NASA Apollo 9 mission – claim Link: https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/1286594/ufo-sighting-alien-spaceship-nasa-apollo-9-ufos-aliens-news ALIEN enthusiasts believe they have spotted a UFO in the clouds in images from NASA's historic Apollo 9 mission. Apollo 9 saw three NASA astronauts blasted into the Earth's orbit for 10 days as a test flight before the Apollo 11 mission, which saw the first people land on the Moon. Commander James McDivitt, Command Module Pilot David Scott, and Lunar Module Pilot Rusty Schweickart lifted off from Earth on March 3, 1969, before spending 10 days in orbit, completing 151 trips around Earth. The three men landed back on Earth on March 13, just four months before the Apollo 11 mission set off for the Moon. Prominent conspiracy theorist Scott C Waring has been analysing the images from the NASA astronauts and believes he has found a UFO which is "100 percent" proof of aliens. Mr Waring wrote on his blog ET Database: "I found a triangle UFO in an old Apollo 9 mission photo. The module was flying directly over Arizona at the time and this triangle UFO was seen in the clouds below. "The triangle looks dark brown. The object is blurry at an equal pace as that of the clouds and other objects [sic ]in the picture. "Had this been 100 percent focused and the clouds blurry, then we would know its not real, but thats not how it is here. "The UFO and the other things in the photo have the same focus which tells us its 100 percent real." This Math Formula Has Determined the Odds of Aliens Existing Link: https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a32603529/math-formula-aliens-exist/ David Kipping leads, yes, the Cool Worlds Laboratory at Columbia University. In an explainer video (below), he describes some background for the question of intelligent life in the universe and concludes, “I've never been much for faith—I want an answer.” Kipping mentions the changing trends over centuries of human imagination: Basically, as soon as people realized what they saw in the sky included other planets, they began to wonder if other planets had intelligent life. An underdeveloped instrument caused astronomers to see “manmade” canals on the surface of Mars during the 1800s. Turn to Bayesian (bei·Zhn) analysis, a way of using what we do know to extrapolate what we don't. And to do that, Kipping put Earth's long history on a replay loop. The squeeze here is whether or not that life would eventually evolve intelligence. Instead of 3:1, the odds are just 3:2, meaning three of every five reruns with life would become intelligent life. So overall, that means a 75 percent probability of life and 60 percent likelihood of intelligence, for an overall probability of 45 percent. If the Bayesian analysis is right, that means even for Earth to be itself was the probabilistic minority. But it's still a more concrete argument for the existence of life on Earthlike planets around the universe. “Overall, our work supports an optimistic outlook for future searches for biosignatures,” the paper explains. Show Stuff Join the fan chat on Discord! Link: https://discord.gg/ZzJSrGP The Dark Horde Podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-dark-horde The Dark Horde, LLC – http://www.thedarkhorde.com Twitter @DarkHorde or https://twitter.com/HordeDark Support the podcast and shop @ http://shopthedarkhorde.com UBR Truth Seekers Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/216706068856746 UFO Buster Radio: https://www.facebook.com/UFOBusterRadio YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCggl8-aPBDo7wXJQ43TiluA To contact Manny: manny@ufobusterradio.com, or on Twitter @ufobusterradio Call the show anytime at (972) 290-1329 and leave us a message with your point of view, UFO sighting, and ghostly experiences or join the discussion on www.ufobusterradio.com For Skype Users: bosscrawler

Look, we’re the first to admit that local government is weird. But apparently we didn’t know just how weird: in Washington State, a Republican state rep is in hot water yet again for espousing what you might describe as Christian Dominionist Terrorism Incitement. Yes, it’s our friend Matt Shea again, and this time he’s in trouble for… being a member of a white separatist organization? (Source: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/as-washington-rep-matt-shea-refuses-to-resign-ammon-bundy-challenges-house-report/)   We also discuss recent reports that Fort Wainwright, Alaska might have a military suicide rate that’s *10 times the Army average*. In fact, it’s gotten so bad that the Army is doing a special study. We brainstormed some solutions, and Francis has the best one: close the base (Source: https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/12/20/suicides-in-alaskas-interior-spark-changes-for-remote-army-post/) The bonus this week features Francis and Brock Wilbur discussing the BioShock series: what it is, why they like it, and whether or not it’s fascist. Get it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/32545495 *SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT* We now have a storefront to sell the patches, buttons, and magnets that we also give out as flair for our $10 tier. Buy some sweet gear here: https://www.hellofawaytodie.com/shop You may have noticed that the next issue of our zine has debuted, and you can get it in print by signing up at the $10 monthly Patreon tier. We have a YouTube channel now -- subscribe here and get sweet videos from us in which we yell in our cars like true veterans: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwlHZpNTz-h6aTeQiJrEDKw You can follow the show on Twitter here: @HellOfAWay Follow Nate here: @inthesedeserts Follow Francis here: @ArmyStrang  

Defense Secretary, Dr. Ash Carter, travels to the Asia-Pacific, conducting a troop talk with the 1-25th SBCT at Fort Wainwright​, Alaska, and visiting the DMZ in South Korea.

This week:Amanda Browder (of the Amanda Browder show) chats with artists and curators Keri Oldham and Jacob Rhodes, founders of the artist run space Field Projects located in Chelsea, NYC. Listen to our conversation about artists as curators, the current gallery system and the ways these two have worked to make Field Projects a space for innovation and a more open dialog between artist and gallery. Next, Max and Hank do the shortest interview in the history of the show at Chicago Comic Con. Lastly, Bad at Sports remembers Eydie Gorme. Field Projects is an artist run project space and online venue dedicated to emerging and mid-career artists. Centered on short-term curatorial projects, Field Projects presents monthly exhibitions at their Chelsea location in addition to pop-up exhibitions throughout New York City. Artists and curators are invited to submit their work for consideration in future exhibitions through our open call submissions guidelines. Curators/Founders/Artists: Keri Oldham is a New York-based artist and curator working in watercolor, paper and video. Her work deals with issues of identity, religion, love and death in cinema. Originally from Dallas, Texas, Oldham has exhibited her work throughout the country, including: Jen Bekman Gallery in New York, Kirk Hopper Gallery in Dallas, The Hardware Store Gallery in San Francisco, Camel Art Space in New York, The Dallas Contemporary, The Reading Room and 500X in Dallas. She was a 2011 Summer Central Track resident and has received other awards including a 2010 New Media Fellowship with BRIC Arts in Brooklyn. Oldham is also founder of Field Projects, an artist-run project space in Chelsea. Her work has been spotlighted and reviewed by Beautiful/Decay, Gwaker Arts, Glasstire, D Magazine, San Francisco Weekly and others. Jacob Rhodes' work explores codes of masculinity, class and the inherent violence in homo-social interaction. The middle child of three boys born to a car mechanic and a school cafeteria cook, Jacob spent his youth touring in punk bands, publishing zines, and self producing records. He received his BFA in New Genre and Photography from Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles where he studied under Larry Johnson, Bruce Hainley, and Richard Hawkins. After graduating, he joined the US Army, spending three years in Alaska at Fort Wainwright’s 172nd Arctic Infantry Brigade. In 2005, he returned to school attending Skowhegan School of Painting and then earned his MFA in Sculpture at Yale School of Art in 2007. Jacob has shown at the Bronx Museum, Alona Kagan Gallery, New York, Federal Art Project, Los Angeles, Galerie Im Regierungsviertel, Berlin, and Bart Wells Institute, London. He currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. http://www.fieldprojectsgallery.com/

GallantFew's primary mission is to provide Ranger and Special Operations Forces veterans leaving active duty with SOF veterans as mentors in the same home-town.  The New American Veteran show features Rangers and other veterans that have successful post-military careers and highlights programs and individuals working on the behalf of veterans.  Today's guest is army veteran Corey Nixon.  Corey is a Kansas native, born and raised in Topeka, Kansas.  He joined the army in 2003, and became at infantryman at Fort Benning, Georgia.  He was stationed in Fort Wainwright, AK with the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT), deployed to Mosul IRAQ from August 2005 to August 2006, received Purple Heart for gunshot wound from sniper in Sept 05, extended during sectarian violence to Baghdad from Sept 06 to Dec 06.  Received Valorous Unit Citation from President for stopping Sectarian Upheaval, received an ARCOM for tour and extension.  He experienced a second deployment to Baqubah IRAQ in 2008-2009.  He was honorably discharged from the US Army as a Sergeant in March 2010.  He is currently the Public Relations Director for Veterans Outdoors Foundation, based out of Topeka KS.  

Package about soldiers from the 16th Contingency Aviation Brigade setting up operations in Ghazi Air Force Base, Pakistan and beginning to deliver supplies from the base to flood-stricken areas in Pakistan. The 16th CAB flies CH-47 Chinook helicopters, which have the ability to haul external, or sling, loads, greatly increasing carrying capacity and efficiency. Produced by Tech. Sgt. Michael Smith. Includes soundbites from Sgt. Jermiah Peryam, U.S. Army, CH-47 Chinook flight engineer, 16th CAB, Fort Wainwright, Alaska. This version includes fonts. pakflood10

Package about The U.S. Army Of The Pacific's (USARPAC) annual ball and choosing it's Soldier and NCO of the Year. Includes sound bites from Lt. Gen. Benjamin R. Mixon, USARPAC Commanding General, Staff Sgt. Eddie Barba, USARPAC NCO Of The Year, Fort Wainwright, Alaska, and Spc. Andy James, USARPAC Soldier of The Year, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, HI. Produced by Lance Cpl. Kevin Beebe. Also see "USARPAC Best Warrior" in the audio section.